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Japan's AI strategy, established in 2019 and subsequently updated in 2021 and 2022, outlines a comprehensive approach to harnessing the potential of AI to address domestic and global challenges while boosting industrial competitiveness.
The main objectives of the strategy can be summarized as follows:
Education Reform: The strategy emphasizes education at all levels, especially in mathematics, data science, and artificial intelligence, and advocates improved educational methods, including STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) education, to prepare students for the digital age.
Rebuilding the research and development system: Japan is investing in an AI R&D network, including establishing AI-related core centers focusing on basic technologies. The goal is to encourage cross-disciplinary research activities and accelerate the application of AI research results in society.
Establishment of data-related infrastructure: Japan actively coordinates and standardizes data, addresses bias issues and ensures network security. The strategy emphasizes the importance of data authenticity and personal identity verification.
Digital government in the AI era: Japan emphasizes transparency, fairness, and accountability in the use of AI within national government agencies. The establishment of digital agencies is a step toward achieving this goal.
Supporting SMEs and startups: Japan encourages SMEs to improve their AI literacy and adopt AI technologies to improve productivity. The strategy also promotes the creation of startups and products using AI.
Japan's AI strategy is built on the principle of a "human-centered AI society" that emphasizes diversity, inclusion, and sustainability. The strategy aims to use AI to promote economic growth and address broader social and global challenges in the 21st century. It reflects forward-thinking about technology, education, and research, positioning Japan as a global leader in AI.
Main Participants
Japan's AI ecosystem balances public and private investments and provides a favorable research environment for AI, which is critical to the Japanese government's Society 5.0 vision.
The Strategic Council on Artificial Intelligence Technologies (SCAIT) serves as the control point for AI development within the government and manages five national R&D agencies and three research centers.
Research and development in AI is jointly funded by the public and private sectors, with the Artificial Intelligence Research Center (AIRC), the RIKEN Advanced Intelligence Project (AIP), and the Center for Artificial Intelligence Science (AIS) being the three most prominent facilities.
The government also supports industry through PRISM, Moonshot (similar to the EU’s Horizon 2020), and the cross-departmental Strategic Innovation Initiative (SIP) programme.
Japan's private sector plays a crucial role in AI research and development, with electronics, automotive and robotics being the main focus.
In the electronics industry, Rakuten is a major player in Internet services and financial technology. The RIKEN Advanced Intelligence Project Center is a collaboration between Fujitsu, NEC, and Toshiba. Toyota, through its Toyota Research Institute (TRI), is working on artificial intelligence technology for self-driving cars, as well as facial recognition, behavior recognition, and voice recognition technologies in the automotive industry.
Honda is working with Chinese company SenseTime on deep learning and image recognition, while Nissan is working with NASA to develop artificial intelligence technology, sensors and software for self-driving robot cars.
Japan is the world's leading manufacturer of robots for industrial and healthcare applications. Mitsubishi Electric's Maisart research program focuses on developing deep learning and large-scale data analysis. Hitachi and FANUC have formed a joint venture called Intelligent Edge Systems (IES), which uses artificial intelligence as an intermediary between the cloud and robots.
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